In Far Bolivia: A Story of a Strange Wild Land

CHAPTER XXIV-BENEE'S STORY-THE YOUNG CANNIBAL QUEEN

I cannot help saying that in forbearing to talkto or to question poor Benee on the evening ofhis arrival, our young heroes exhibited a spirit oftrue manliness and courage which was greatly totheir credit.

That they were burning to get news of theunfortunate Peggy goes without saying, and to hear atthe same time Benee's own marvellous adventures.

Nor did they hurry the poor fellow even next day.

It is a good plan to fly from temptation, when youare not sure you may not fall. There is nothingdishonourable about such a course, be the temptationwhat it may.

Roland and Dick adopted the plan this morning atall events. Both were awake long before sunrise; long before the beautiful stars had ceased to glittergem-like high over mountains and forest.

The camp was hardly yet astir, although Burly Billwas looming between the lads and the light as theystood with honest Brawn in the big tent doorway.Over his head rose a huge cloud of fragrant smoke, while ever and anon a gleam from the bowl of hismeerschaum lit up his good-humoured face.

It had not taken the lads long to dress, and nowthey sauntered out.

The first faint light of the dawning day was alreadybeginning to pale the stars. Soon the sun himself, red and rosy, would sail up from his bed behind thefar green forest.

"Bill!"

"Hillo! Good-morning to you both! I've been upfor hours."

"And we could not sleep for-thinking. But I say,Bill, I think Benee has good news. I'm burning tohear it, and so is Dick here, but it would be downrightmean to wake the poor fellow till he is well rested.So, for fear we should seem too inquisitive, or toosquaw-like, we're off with bold Brawn here for awalk. Yes, we are both armed."

When the lads came back in about two hours' time, they found Benee up and dressed and seated on thegrass at breakfast.

When I say he was dressed I allude to the fact thathe very much needed dressing, for his garments werein rags, his blanket in tatters. But he had taken theclothes Bill provided for him, and gone straight to theriver for a wash and a swim.

He looked quite the old Benee on his return.

"Ah!" said Bill, "you're smiling, Benee. I knowyou have good news."

"Plenty good, Massa Bill, one leetle bitee bad!"

"Well, eat, old man; I'm hungry. Yes, the boys arebeautiful, and they'll be here in a few minutes."

And so they were.

Brawn was before them. He darted in with a rushand a run, and licked first Benee's ears and then Bill's.It was a rough but a very kindly salute.

In these sky-high regions of Bolivia, a walk or runacross the plains early in the morning makes onealmost painfully hungry.

But here was a breakfast fit for a king; eggs ofwild birds, fish, and flesh of deer, with cakes galore, for the Indians were splendid cooks.

Then, after breakfast, Benee told the boys and Billall his long and strange story. It was a thrilling one,as we know already, and lost none of its effect bybeing related in Benee's simple, but often graphic andfigurative language.

"Oh!" cried impulsive Dick, when he had finished, and there were tears in the lad's eyes that he tooksmall pains to hide, "you have made Roland and mehappy, inexpressibly happy, Benee. We know nowthat dear Peggy is well, and that nothing can harmher for the present, and something tells me we shallreceive her safe and sound."

Benee's face got slightly clouded.

"Will it not be so, Benee?"

"The Christian God will help us, Massa Dick. Deris mooch-plenty mooch-to be done!"

"And we're the lads to do it," almost shouted Burly Bill.

"Wowff! Wowff!" barked Brawn in the most emphatic manner.

In another hour all were once more on the marchtowards the land of the cannibals.

—

Life at the court of Queen Leeboo, as her peoplecalled poor Peggy, was not all roses, but well the girlknew that if she was to harbour any hopes of escapeshe must keep cool and play her game well.

She had all a woman's wits about her, however, andall a woman's wiles. Vain Peggy certainly was not, but she knew she was beautiful, and determined tomake the best use of the fact.

Luckily for her she could speak the language ofthis strange wild people as well as anyone, for Charliehimself had been her teacher.

A strangely musical and labial tongue it is, andfigurative, too, as might be expected, for the sceneryof every country has a certain effect upon its language.

It was soon evident that Queen Leeboo was expectedto stay in the royal camp almost entirely.

This she determined should not be the case. Soafter the royal breakfast one morning-and a verydelightful and natural meal it was, consisting chieflyof nuts and fruit-Queen Leeboo seized her sceptre, the poisoned spear, and stepped lightly down from herthrone.

"That isn't good enough," she said, "I want a littlefresh air."

Her attendants threw themselves on their facesbefore her, but she made them get up, and very muchastonished they were to see the beautiful queen marchalong the great hall and step out on to theskull-decorated verandah.

The palace was built on a mountain ledge or table-landof small dimensions. It was backed by giganticand precipitous rocks, now most beautifully drapedwith the greenery of bush and fern, and trailed overby a thousand charming wild flowers.

Leeboo, as we may call her for the present, seatedherself languidly on a dais. She knew better than tobe rash. Her object was to gain the entire confidenceof her people. In this alone lay her hopes of escape, and thoughts of freedom were ever uppermost in her mind.

This was the first time she had been beyond theportals of her royal prison-house, but she determinedit should not be the last.

While her attendants partially encircled her shegazed dreamily at the glorious scenery beyond andbeneath her.

From her elevated position she could view thelandscape for leagues and leagues on every side. Few ofus, in this tame domestic land that we all love so well, have ever visited so beautiful a country as thesehighlands of Bolivia.

Fresh from the hands of its Maker did it seem onthis fresh, cool, delightful morning. The dark greenof its rolling woods and forests, the heath-clad hills, the streams that meandered through the dales likethreads of silver, the glittering lakes, the plains wherethe llamas, and even oxen, roamed in great herds, andfar, far away on the horizon the serrated mountains, patched and flecked with snow, that hid their summitsin the fleecy clouds; the whole formed as grand andlovely a panorama as ever human eyes beheld.

But it was marred somewhat by the immediatesurroundings of poor Leeboo.

Oh, those awful skulls! "Is everything good andbeautiful in Nature," she could not help askingherself, "except mankind?"

Here was the faint odour of death, and she beheldon many of these skulls the mark of the axe, reminding her of murder. She shuddered. Her palacewas but a charnel-house. Those crouching creaturesaround her, waiting to do her bidding or obey herslightest behest, were but slaves of tyrant masters, and every day she missed one of the youngest andfairest, and knew what her doom would be.

And out beyond the gate yonder were her soldiers, her guards. Alas, yes! and they were her keepers also.

But behold! yonder comes the great chief Kaloomah, her prime minister, and walking beside him is Kalamazoo.

Kaloomah walks erect and stately, as becomes sohigh a functionary. He is stern in face even togrimness and ferocity, but as handsome in form as some ofthe heroes of Walter Scott.

And Kalamazoo is little more than a boy, and one, too, of somewhat fragile form, with face more delicatethan is becoming in a cannibal Indian.

Kalamazoo is the only son of the late queen. Forsome reason or other he wears a necklace of hismother's red-stained teeth. Probably they are a charm.

Both princes kneel at Leeboo's feet. Leeboo strikesboth smartly on the shoulders with her sceptre andbids them stand up.

"I would not have you grovel round me," she saysin their own tongue, "like two little pigs of theforest." They stand up, looking sheepish and nonplussed, andLeeboo, placing one on each side of her-a spear-lengthdistant, – looks first at Kaloomah and then at Kalamazooand bursts into a silvery laugh.

Why laughs Queen Leeboo? These two men areboth very natural, both somewhat solemn. Not evenlittle pigs of the forest like to be laughed at.

But the queen's mistress of the robes-let me callher so-has told her that she is expected to take untoherself a husband in three moons, and that it must beeither Kaloomah or Kalamazoo.

This is now no state secret. All the queen's peopleknow, from her own palace gates to the remotest mudhut on this cannibalistic territory. They all know it, and they look forward to that week of festivity aschildren in the rural districts of England look forwardto a fair.

There will be a monster carousal that day.

The soldiers of the queen will make a raid on aneighbouring hill tribe, and bring back many headsand many hams.

If Kaloomah is the favourite, then Kalamazoo willbe slain and cooked.

If the queen elects to smile on Kalamazoo with hisnecklace of the maternal molars and incisors, thenKaloomah with the best grace he can must submit tothe knife.

Yet must I do justice to both and say that it is notbecause they fear death that they are so anxious tocurry favour with the young and lovely queen. Ohno! for both are over head in love with her.

And a happy thought has occurred to Leeboo. Shewill play one against the other, and thus, in some wayto herself at present unknown, endeavour to effect herescape from this land of murder, blood, and beautifulscenery.

So there they stand silently, a spear-length from herdais, she glorying in the power she knows she hasover both. There they stand in silence, for courtetiquette forbids them to speak until spoken to.

Very like a couple of champion idiots they are too.Big Kaloomah doesn't quite know what to do with hishands, and Kalamazoo is fidgeting nervously with hisnecklace, and apparently counting his dead mother'steeth as monks count their beads.

Leeboo rises at last, and, gathering the loose portionof her skirts around her, says: "Come, I would walk."

She is a little way ahead, and she waves her spearso prettily as she smiles her sweetest and points to thegrimly ornamental gate.

And after hesitating for one moment, both Kaloomahand the young prince follow sheepishly.

The guards by the gate, grim, fully armed cut-throats, seeing that her majesty expects obedience, fall back, and the trio march through.

But I do not think that either of Leeboo's loversis prepared for what follows.

If they had calculated on a solemn majestic walkaround the plateau, they were soon very much undeceived.

Leeboo had no sooner begun to breathe the gloriousmountain air, than she felt as exuberant as a childagain. Indeed, she was but little else. But she placedher spear and sceptre of royalty very unceremoniouslyinto Kaloomah's hand to hold, while she darted offafter a splendid crimson specimen of dragon-fly.

Kaloomah looked at Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo lookedat Kaloomah.

The one didn't love the other, it is true, yet afellow-feeling made them wondrous kind. And the feelinguppermost in the mind of each was wonder.

Kaloomah beckoned to Kalamazoo, and pointed tothe queen. The words he spoke were somewhat asfollows:

"Too much choorka-choorka! Suppose the queenwe lose-"

He pointed with his thumb to his neck by way ofcompleting the sentence.

"Too much choorka-choorka!" repeated the youngprince. "You old-you stop her."

"No, no, you young-you run quick, you stop her!"

That dragon-fly gave Leeboo grand sport for overhalf an hour. From bush to bush it flitted, and flewfrom flower to flower, over rocks, over cairns, andfinally down the great hill that led to the plain below.

Matters looked serious, so both lovers were now induty bound to follow their all-too-lively queen.

When they reached the bottom of the brae, however, behold! – but stay, there was no behold about it.Queen Leeboo was nowhere to be seen!

CHAPTER XXV-BENEE'S MOTHER TO THE FRONT

Here was a difficulty!

If they returned without the queen, theywould be torn in pieces and quietly eaten afterwards.

They became excited. They looked here, there, andeverywhere for Leeboo. Up into the trees, under thebushes, behind rocks and stones, but all in vain. Thebeautiful girl seemed to have been spirited away, orthe earth had opened and admitted her into fairy-land, or-

But see! To their great joy, yonder comes theyoung queen holding aloft the dragon-fly and singingto herself.

Not a whit worse was the lovely thing; not one ofits four gauzy wings was so much as rumpled.

Then she whispered something to it, and tossed ithigh in air.

And away it flew, straight to the north-east, asif bent upon delivering the message she had entrustedto its keeping.

She stood gazing after it with flushed cheeks andparted lips until it was no longer visible against thesky's pale blue, then turned away with a sigh.

But Leeboo was not tired yet. There were beautifulbirds to be seen and their songs listened to. Andthere were garlands of wild flowers to be strung.

One she threw over Kaloomah's neck.

Kalamazoo looked wretched.

She made him even a larger, and he was happy.This garland quite hid his mother's frightful teeth.

But it must be said that these two lovers of Leeboo'slooked-with those garlands of flowers around theirnecks-more foolish than ever.

She trotted them round for two whole hours. Thenshe resumed her sceptre, and intimated her intentionto return to the palace.

For a whole week these rambles were continuedday after day.

Then storm-winds blew wild from off the snow-patchedmountains, and Leeboo was confined to herpalace for days.

Her maids of honour, however, did all they couldto please and comfort her. They brought her thechoicest of fruits, and they told her strange weirdtales of strange weird people and mannikins who inthese regions dwell deep down in caves below theground, and often steal little children to nurse theirtiny infants.

And they sang or chanted to her also, and all nightlong in the drapery-hung chamber, where she reposedon a couch of skins, they lay near her, ready to startto their feet and obey her slightest command.

Leeboo ruled her empire by love. But she couldbe haughty and stern when she pleased, only shenever made use of that terrible spear, one touch ofwhich meant death.

—

In less than six-weeks' time Queen Leeboo had sothoroughly gained the confidence of her people thatshe was trusted to go anywhere, although alwaysunder the eyes of the young prince or Kaloomah.

I believe Leeboo would have learned to like thesavages but for their cannibal tastes, and several times, when men returned from the war-path, she had towitness the most terrible of orgies.

It was always young girls or boys who were thevictims of those fearful feasts. Her heart bled forthem, but all remonstrance on her part was in vain.

Leeboo had got her pony back, and often had aglorious gallop over the prairie.

But something else had happened, which addedgreatly to Leeboo's comfort and happiness. Shooks-geehimself came to camp and brought with him littleWeenah, his beautiful child-daughter.

Leeboo took to her at once, and the two becameconstant companions.

Weenah could converse in broken English, and somany a long delightful "confab" they had together.

Child-like, Weenah told Leeboo of her love forBenee, of their early rambles in the forest, too, and ofher own wild wanderings in search of him. Told her, too, that Benee was coming back again with a fresharmy of Indians and white men, with Leeboo's ownlover and her brother as their captains; told her of thefearful fight that was bound to take place, but whichwould end in the complete triumph of the good menand the rescue of Leeboo herself.

Yes, Weenah had her prophecy all cut and dry, andher story ended with a good "curtain", as all goodstories should.

Whether Weenah's prophecy would be fulfilled ornot we have to read on to see, for, alas! it was a darkand gloomy race of savages that would have to be dealtwith, and rather than lose their queen, Kaloomah andhis people would-but there! I have no wish topaint my chapters red.

—

Leeboo was not slow to perceive that her chiefchance of escape lay in the skill with which she mightplay her two lovers against each other.

Whoever married her would be king. He wouldrank with, but after, the queen herself, for, to thecredit of these cannibals be it said, they always preferfemale government.

In civilized society Leeboo might have been accusedof acting mischievously; for she would take first oneinto favour and then the other, giving, that is, eachof them a taste of the seventh heaven time about.When Kalamazoo's star was in the ascendant, thenKaloomah was deep down in a pit of despair; butanon, he would be up and out again, and then it wasKalamazoo's turn to weep and wail and gnash histriangular red-stained teeth.

It is needless to say that the game she was playingwas a sad strain upon our poor young heroine. Nowonder her eyes grew bright with that brightnesswhich denotes loss of strength, and weariness, and thather cheeks were often far too flushed.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, and but forlittle Weenah I think that Leeboo would have givenup heart altogether and lain down to die.

But Weenah was always bright, cheerful, andhappy. She was laughing all day long. Benee wascoming for her; of that she was very certain andsure, so she sang about her absent lover even asbirds in the woodlands sing, and with just as sweeta voice.

The plot was thickening and thickening, and Leeboomanaged matters now so that only one of herguardians at a time accompanied herself and Weenah intheir rides or rambles.

Dixie-as the pony was named-was a very faithfullittle horse, and though when Weenah had to trotbeside him he never was allowed to go the pace, hewas exceedingly strong, and could scour the plainor prairie as fleet as the wind whenever his youngmistress put him on his mettle. On such occasions,no matter which of Leeboo's admirers was with her,he dropped far astern, and after running for a mileor so, had to sit down to pant.

But the young queen always returned, and so shewas trusted implicitly.

So too was Weenah, but then Weenah was one ofthemselves.

—

In their very long and toilsome march, up the Mayatata, well was it indeed for Roland and Dick that theyhad guides so faithful and clever as Benee and Charlie.But for them, indeed, the expedition would have beenforedoomed to failure.

Benee indeed was really the guiding star. For inhis own lonesome wanderings he had surveyed thewhole country as it were, and knew every fittingplace for a camp, every ford on every stream, andevery pathway through the dense and dark forests.

They were but the pathways made by the beasts, however, and often all but impassable. Still, in singlefile they marched, and were always successful inmaking their way. Two whole months passed away, and now, as they were nearing the cannibal highlands, greater precautions than ever were required.

And for a week they had to turn night into day, and travel while the savages slept.

They kept away, too, from any portion of thecountry which seemed to have the slightest claim tobe called inhabited. Better they should herd withthe wild beasts of the forest than sight the face ofeven a single savage. For swift as deer that savagewould run towards the cannibal head-quarters andgive information of the approach of a pale-face hordeof enemies.

At last there came a day when Benee called acouncil of war.

"We now get near de bad man's land," he said."Ugh! I not lub mooch blood."

"Then what would you have us do?" said Roland."Shall we advance boldly or make a night attack?"

"No, no, no, sah. Too many cannibal warrior, toomuch pizen arrow, sling, and spear. No; build herea camp. Make he strong. Benee will go all same.Benee will creep and crawl till he come to father andmother house. Den Benee make all right. Pray forBenee."

Benee left, poor Brawn bidding him a mostaffectionate farewell. Surely that honest dog knew hewas bent on saving his little mistress, if only hecould.

Charlie, the ex-cannibal, stayed in camp for thetime being, but he might be useful as a spy afterwards.

It is needless to say that the prayers of both ourheroes were offered up night and day for Benee'ssuccess, and that their blessings followed him.

But we do not always receive the answers thatwould appear to us the best to our prayers, howeverearnest and heartfelt they may be. Still, we knowwell, though we are generally very loth to admit it, that afflictions are very often blessings in disguise.

And now Benee was once more all alone on thewar-path, and he followed his old tactics, creepingquietly through the jungle only by night, and retiringinto hiding whenever day began to obliterate the stars.Roland gave orders for the camp to be immediatelyfortified. It was certainly a well-chosen one, on thetop of a wooded hill.

This hill was scarcely a hundred feet high, butalthough it might be taken by siege, its positionrendered it almost impregnable as far as assault wasconcerned.

A rampart with a trench was thrown round threesides of it. That was apparently all that would beneeded.

Looking from below by daylight even, hardly asavage could have told that an enemy held the hill.

And now there was nothing to do but to wait. Andwaiting is always wearisome work.

But let us follow Benee.

His progress was slow, but it was sure, and at lasthe reached the cottage where good Shooks-gee andhis wife resided.

But here was no one save his "mother", as Beneelovingly called her.

A great fear took possession of his mind. Could itbe that his father himself was dead, and that Weenahwas captive?

His lips and voice almost refused to formulate thequestion nearest to his heart.

But his mother's smile reassured him. Weenahwas safe, and at the court of the queen, and Shooks-geehimself was there. So Benee grew hopeful once more.

But his task would be by no means an easy one.

First and foremost he must establish communicationbetween the captive girl and himself. How couldthis be done?

Had Shooks-gee been at home it might have beenmanaged simply enough. But he himself dared notappear anywhere in sight of the savages.

He felt almost baffled, but at last his mother cameto his rescue.

The risk would be extreme. These cannibal savagesare as suspicious of strangers as they are fierce andbloodthirsty, and if this poor, kindly-hearted womanwas taken for a spy her doom would be sealed.

But see the young queen she must, or little Weenah, her daughter; for great though Benee's abilities were,he did not possess the accomplishment of writing.

—

Dressed as one of the lowest of peasants, the motherof Weenah set boldly out on her forlorn hope the verynext day, and in the afternoon she was within onemile of the palace itself.

Here she hid herself in the jungle, and after eatinga little fruit went to sleep.

The stars were still shining when she awoke, butshe knew them all, and those that were setting toldher that day would soon break.

To pass through the soldier-guards and enter thepalace would, she knew, be an utter impossibility.There was nothing for it but to wait with patience, for her husband had told her that the queen rode outfor a scamper over the plains every forenoon.

He had even told her the direction she usuallytook, not riding fast, but with Weenah running byher side, keeping a long way ahead of her loverguardian, whichever one of them might happen forthe time being to be the happy man.

Benee's mother was as courageous as a mountaincat. She had a duty to perform, and she meant tocarry it out.

Well, we are told in some old classic that fortunefavours the brave.

It does not always do so, but in this case, at allevents, this good woman was successful.

At a certain part of the plain there were bushesclose and thick enough, and just here Leeboo withher little charger must pass if she came out to-day at all.

It was at this spot, then, that Weenah's motherconcealed herself.

Nor had she very long to wait, for soon thesound of the pony's hoofs fell on her ear, beating apleasant accompaniment to two sweet voices raised insong.

The Indian woman raised herself and peeped overthe bushes.

Yes, they were coming, and alone too, for Kaloomahcould not run so fast as Kalamazoo, and was a longway behind.

With characteristic impulse Weenah rushed forwardand was clasped for a moment in her mother's arms.

And, somewhat astonished, Leeboo immediately reined up.